Charged with driving without a valid licence?

Get character references

Written references from people who can talk about your good character may help your case. They should be addressed to the magistrate, and the people writing them should say they know about the charges you are in court for.

For more information see Character References.

Get a driver licence

If you have been charged with driving unlicenced, it is a good idea to get a driver licence before the court date. You can find information about how to do this at www.service.nsw.gov.au.

Sort out your fines

If your licence has been suspended because you haven’t paid your fines, you should arrange to pay them. If you need help to manage your fines debt, contact Revenue NSW on 1300 655 805 or visit www.nsw.gov.au/money-and-taxes/finesand-fees.

You may be able to get a Work and Development Order (WDO) which allows you to clear up to $1,000 a month off your fines through approved activities or treatment programs. For more information go to the WDO page.

Write down what you want to say to the court

Write a letter to the magistrate, or make notes of what you will say in court. The court will consider what you say when it decides what penalty to give you.

In you letter you should cover:

• Why you chose to drive.
• If you were stopped at a random breath test, or because you were driving erratically or dangerously.
• if something happened which led you todrive, when you hadn’t planned to
• If you need your licence for work or personal reasons, for example:
  
• • if other people rely on you
  • if you need a licence for work. If so, get a letter from your employer to say what will happen to your job if you are disqualified from driving for a long time
  • if you have other reasons for needing a driver licence (for example, adisabled child or health problems) have evidence to show this (like adoctor’s certificate or report), and
  • if you don’t have other transport you can use (like public transport or afriend or family member to drive you), explain this to the court.
• why the court should accept that you won’t commit another similar offence. For example, if you have been charged with:
  • driving while unlicensed – what steps you have taken or will take to get a licence, or
  • driving suspended due to non-payment of fines – what steps you have taken or will take to pay, or start paying off the fines.
• what your weekly income and expenses are (this will help the court work out any fine it gives you).

You can ask the court to adjourn your case (this means asking for your case to be put on hold) if you need to:

• apply for your licence (if you are anunlicensed driver)
• make arrangements to pay anyoutstanding fines with Revenue NSW (if your licence has been suspended for non-payment of fines), or
• get legal advice.

If you have obtained a licence, take it to court with you.

When you get to court, find the court officer and let them know that you are representing yourself and pleading guilty. You can usually find them inside or just outside your courtroom.

If you want legal advice, find the Legal Aid NSW duty lawyer at court or ask the court to adjourn your case so you can get legal aid advice.

The police will have a fact sheet which says why you were charged and what happened when you were charged. Make sure you read it. If you disagree with what the police say happened, you should get legal advice before you plead guilty.

The police prosecutor should also show you a copy of your criminal record (if you have one) and a copy of your driving record. Read these documents carefully to make sure they really are yours. If you think there is wrong information on your criminal or driving record tell the magistrate when it is your turn to speak.

Listen to what other people say to the magistrate while you wait for your name to be called. It can be helpful to sit in the courtroom and listen to other people presenting guilty pleas to give you a better idea of how to present yours.

Speak to the magistrate when your name is called. Say you are pleading guilty and either ask to hand your letter to the magistrate or read from the notes you’ve made. Give the court any written references and documents that you have to support your case.

Even if the court doesn’t record a conviction against you and disqualify you from driving, any period of disqualification or suspension you already had from an earlier offence will stay in place.

• Don’t drive while disqualified
  Do not drive without a licence or while your licence is suspended or disqualified. The police can take away your vehicle for six months if you drive while disqualified three or more times in a five year period.
• Reapply for your licence
  When your disqualification period is over, you must reapply for your licence. You will not get it back automatically. If you drive before you do this you could be charged with ‘driving while cancelled’. Contact Transport for NSW on 13 22 13 or visit www.nsw.gov.au to find out how to get a new licence.
• Pay your fine
  If the court gives you a fine and you think you will have trouble paying it in the 28 days you have to pay it, speak to court staff before you leave about making a ‘time to pay’ arrangement.
  If you don’t pay the fine in the time you are told to pay it, Revenue NSW can take other action against you. See how to pay your fines under ‘How should I prepare for court?'

You can appeal to the District Court if you are not happy with the magistrate’s decision, but you should get legal advice before you do this. You have 28 days from the date of the magistrate’s decision to lodge your appeal. You will also have to pay a fee. If you are on a Centrelink benefit or experiencing financial hardship, ask if the fee can be waived.

For more information about how to appeal see the Legal Aid NSW brochure called Appealing to the District Court.

If you were not in court when the magistrate made the decision, and you had a good reason, you can apply to the court asking for the decision to be reversed and the matter reheard. For more information about this see the Legal Aid NSW brochure called. For more information about this see Reviewing Local Court decisions.